Hopefully, this is part of a negotiated process that ends up somewhere productive. Without action these companies will continue to just do whatever gets them the most revenue regardless of the damage they cause.
These companies will always follow the money. What has changed in the last few years is the financial risk of failing to protect young users. Safety is not something they do out of kindness. It is something they do to avoid fines, keep advertisers, and maintain access to entire markets.
There is public evidence of this. TikTok removes millions of videos each quarter for child-safety violations and deletes large numbers of underage accounts because regulators can hit them with huge penalties. Meta rolled out strict “Teen Account” settings, including private profiles and blocked adult messages, following several investigations. YouTube turned off personalised ads and autoplay for all minors because advertisers stopped spending when the platform looked unsafe.
Right now, the most substantial incentive is to prove that their platforms are safe for young people. If they do not, regulators, advertisers, parents, and even teens turn away, which is far more costly than investing in safety tools.
These are existential threats. Child-safety investment is risk management, not charity.
So while profit is the motive, child protection has become part of the business model. The real opportunity now is to push them toward smarter and more effective safety frameworks, rather than assuming that bans will fix the problem.
Hopefully, this is part of a negotiated process that ends up somewhere productive. Without action these companies will continue to just do whatever gets them the most revenue regardless of the damage they cause.
I agree.
These companies will always follow the money. What has changed in the last few years is the financial risk of failing to protect young users. Safety is not something they do out of kindness. It is something they do to avoid fines, keep advertisers, and maintain access to entire markets.
There is public evidence of this. TikTok removes millions of videos each quarter for child-safety violations and deletes large numbers of underage accounts because regulators can hit them with huge penalties. Meta rolled out strict “Teen Account” settings, including private profiles and blocked adult messages, following several investigations. YouTube turned off personalised ads and autoplay for all minors because advertisers stopped spending when the platform looked unsafe.
Right now, the most substantial incentive is to prove that their platforms are safe for young people. If they do not, regulators, advertisers, parents, and even teens turn away, which is far more costly than investing in safety tools.
These are existential threats. Child-safety investment is risk management, not charity.
So while profit is the motive, child protection has become part of the business model. The real opportunity now is to push them toward smarter and more effective safety frameworks, rather than assuming that bans will fix the problem.